I swear that I will return to talking about robots and post humanism shortly. Forgive my temporary lapse in preoccupation, dear sentients.

Let me address this 'murderous' urge that the header implies. I don't, in actuality, want to kill anyone, but I would like to murder the likeness of one of my readers within the pages of my next book.

'A God in the Shed' is a horror/fantasy story and this means I'm going to be murdering some characters. I decided it would be fun to have one of these victims be one of my supporters. The idea is that everyone who pre-orders my book, 'A God in the Shed' gets a chance to win. Every pre-order that is from a reference wins the referrer an extra chance. The more you promote the book, the better your chances of dying by my pen.

Essentially, the winner, drawn at random, will get to collaborate with me (we'll Skype or something) and we'll come up with a suitable way to include your likeness into the book, as a minor character, which will be gruesomely dispatched.

So please go pre-order 'A God in the Shed' and help me spread the word far and wide so that you can win the chance to 'die'. It's worth noting that you'll also get the opportunity to beta-read the manuscript so you can witness your demise ahead of everyone else.

Click on these buttons to share and have your recommendations be counted.

As always, many thanks for your support.

JF

Good day thinking machines, biological or artificial!

In this update I want to talk about editing, but first; a message to fellow Nerdtacular attendees.

NERDTACULAR 

If you’re attending Nerdtacular in Utah later this week, seek me out. Come shake my hand. Be one of the first to see the first finished model of Koalemos, one of the main characters from The Life Engineered. More importantly, if you pre-ordered your copy before May 31st, drop by the TadShop to get your free, signed robot art print and bask in my awkward show of gratitude.

On Editing

I’m currently in the middle of developmental editing. This is usually the most ego-punching step in getting a book to print. It’s at this stage that I have to listen to the suggestions and directions of a seasoned professional and accept his recommendations with detached professionalism. No matter what he tells me, I have to keep in mind that we’re both working to make this into a better book.

So far, my editor, Cleete is knocking this sucker right out of the park. I agree with almost every recommendations he’s made so far and everything reads better after I’ve applied his changes. What makes this a process both difficult yet rewarding though is that I’m learning a lot that will make me a better writer for the next book.

In case you’re thinking that the edits are just a long list of ‘change this’ and ‘this isn’t right’, let me show you a sample of what the first page looked like.

As you can see, it’s not all bad. Not only do I learn what not to do but just as importantly, I’m learning what to do more of.

I already love The Life Engineered but once I’m done with this process, I think we might have an excellent book for you guys and gals to enjoy.

Thanks again for your support.

Oh… before I go; just received the first sketches for the new cover of The Life Engineered. Already it looks better than the current cover. Very exciting stuff. 

 JF 

AHHHHH!!!!

Today's the day and I've still got chapters to go! EVERYONE remain calm, don't panic - who's panicking? I AM PANICKING. 

In all seriousness - everything is fine. I'm going to finish the first draft this weekend, then spend a couple of weeks doing a 'first pass' edit before I submit to Inkshares and the editing process begins in earnest. Writing is re-writing - the book is going to change and grow in so many ways after I send it over - BUT THAT GOLDEN BAR IN MY GOOGLE CALENDAR IS FREAKING ME OUT.

It's fine. It's fine. Everything's fine. I just worship at the Altar of Deadlines, so I get a little twitchy when I blow my self-imposed ones. I am not one of those writers who 'writes all the time - giggle!' or 'just can't stop writing! - ha ha!' I am a dilettante and lothario, left to my own devices it would just be occasional twitter posts in-between marathon video game sessions on my couch and drunken poetry-brawls with wandering bards. My first two books I lived in constant fear that I would just STOP...and never start again if I missed a deadline.

I'll update you guys again as soon as the draft is done - and FASCINATE you with the process I go through for my first-pass edit.

Here's a quick snippet from the current page of the draft, open now in another tab:

Jonas had just enough time to realize he understood the creature’s words before he saw the rainbow vapor ignite and a torrent of energy come screaming out of the dragon’s jaws. He surged forward, hoping to pull Xenon back from the assault, but Linus and his white sword were already there. The hunter stepped in front of her and the patchwork energies of the dragon’s breath were absorbed into the blank metal.

“Scholar Xenon, fall back.” Linus commanded. “Squire, you guard my back. I didn’t spot a tail on this creature, but it seems agile enough. We will keep its attention firmly fixed on us, understood?”

“Yes!” Jonas stepped into place, keeping one eye on Xenon’s retreat as she hurried back towards the lighted pathway behind them.

The dragon howled with rage -- or was it delight and breathed more of the ramshackle energy upon them. The white sword again devoured it. “The creature is mad. It’s been feeding on the life-force of its brethren for who knows how long. It’s breath is some bizarre mixture of different elemental types.”

“I’m just glad it breathes something the sword eats,” Jonas grunted.

“Yes, well - “ Linus shifted his grip on the white sword. “It appears he has grown bored with that tactic. Here he comes!”

“Does your magic sword happen to kill dragons with a single touch?” the squire spun to cover Linus’ right flank.

“I don’t know. Does yours?” the old man shifted his stance, keeping his elbow high.

Still writing - turning the corner on 50k in the draft tonight. End of the second act, now it's time for prophecies, laser fights, improper make-out sessions, and the coming of the Asteroid. Here's a sweet picture of a dragon. Talk to you guys again soon!

We won. We won again. We double-won. If winning the first time was like meeting a unicorn, this is like that same unicorn wants to take you to McDonald's and swears that it won't eat your fries and only wants to talk about Kurosawa films and Stephen Universe.

Okay - I'm not making sense. You should be used to it by now.

Our campaign was selected to be in the Sword & Laser Collection - Asteroid Made of Dragons won the grand prize. Don't believe me?!? (Wise.) Watch this video and listen to Veronica Belmont announce the winners.

S&L Collection Winner!

Big congratulations to the other grand prize winner The Life Engineered by JF Dubeau. Only proper that Sword & Laser make two picks! 

I have a lot more to say, but right now it's all melting down into plasma-gratitude. You guys did this. Your support got us here and I am so beyond excited to deliver. Once my heart stops flamenco dancing I'll start updating you - I will update you within an inch of your life. Updates on the progress of the draft, the projected schedule for writing, that artwork I want to get for you guys, pant pant, audiobook?, what HAVE I DONE. It's going to be an amazing ride, and you are the best cadre of scalawags and sorcerers I could ever wish to take it with.

Just thank you. Thank you all so very much. I am borderline guaranteed to be sobbing in my tub tonight, my obsidian heart splintering and shining forth a gentle glow the color of lilacs.

If you're not getting enough of me here - come find me on Twitter @gderekadams or at my regular blog spell-sword.com .  This is the last scene of Rudy, y'all. This is the stupid, stupid end of Independence Day - let us swagger across the internet desert, smoking cigars with Jeff Goldblum. Squires and Wild Mages you are officially instructed to party down.

Greetings from 2 o'clock in the morning,

WE DID IT! After a month and a half of listening to me beg and plead in person and on Facebook, after four years of drafts, submissions, rejections, and rewrites, after a third thing that must exist, because of the rule of three, An Unattractive Vampire is finally going to be published! Thank you to everyone who helped me. If you bought a book thank you. If posted on Facebook or talked to friends, thank you. If you said, "No, seriously Jim, you should enter that contest," thank you. And for those of you who don't actually know me, but saw the title or read a sample chapter and said, "Huh, I kind of want to read that," thank you.

So, where do we go from here? Well, first of all, I'm going to go to bed. At noon tomorrow (or 2 for me), the Sword and Laser will announce which book will be the debut novel in the their collection. After that...I don't rightly know, but I'll find out. And when I do, I'll let you know.

But for now, sleep.

Thanks one and everyone.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.

Good morning everybody,

It's the final day of the Sword and Laser contest. At midnight PST, all of this comes to an end and whether or not this book is published will finally be decided. I expect a bumpy ride to the finish line; a day full of jumps from all the books as we make last minute pleas and pushes.

Again, if you have not preordered yet. Do it now! Seriously, right now. I'll wait...

If you have bought a book, you are a wonderful person. Also, tell a friend to buy a book. Or recommend it, using the recommend button. Or like a passage. Did I mention how cool and attractive you are?

In case you need some incentive, here are some things that await you  if this novel of mine (which, just to be clear, is long since finished) is published: more fun with the Puritans, the perils of modern New Amsterdam (or whatever they’re calling it these days), a vampire club, a werewolf bar, an Irish trickster shade, redundant terms like Irish trickster, a resurrected coma patient, corrections on what to call soda (pop), Proper Vampirism™ Revised Edition 7, the lost city of Akkad, a Chinese hopping vampire, a West African plague vampire, a Spanish Inquisitor, the Aztec god of night and magic, and much, much more...

So if you want to learn what any of that means, you know what to do: Preorder! Recommend! Like!

And as always...thank you all.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to obsessively update the Top Ten page every 30 seconds until 2 AM CST.